Education Services

CSEA offers dozens of Dependent Scholarships to dependents of members planning to further their education.

This is an on-line application that must be completed in one sitting as there is no option to save and come back to it later. You must gather all your information in advance, including documents you will be required to upload. Use this pre-application worksheet to prepare. After you have gathered all the information and required additional documents, we recommend setting aside one hour to complete the application.

Note: The most common mistakes made that causes an automatic disqualification from consideration for a scholarship are submitting an official but unsigned transcript or submitting an unofficial transcript. Transcripts must be both official and signed by the school registrar to be considered.

Pre-Application Worksheet – Use this worksheet to help you gather all the information and documents needed to complete the application.

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Eligibility Requirements

There are three categories of dependent scholarships: 1) First Year, 2) Community College, and 3) University, College, University, Trade, or Vocational School. Graduating high school seniors and those already attending a college, university, or trade or vocational school are eligible to apply. Applications are now available and are due February 1.

• Applicants must be an IRS dependent of a CSEA member in good standing.
• Applicants must have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0, including all schoolwork to date taken at their current educational institution level at the time of application.
• For the First Year Scholarship category, applicants are limited to graduating high school seniors or equivalent (i.e., private school, privately tutored, or accredited correspondence school), and must be planning to enter an accredited college (including community colleges and accredited trade schools) as a full-time student by the Fall term following receipt of the scholarship.
• • For the Community College or the University, College, Trade, or Vocational school categories, applicants must be enrolled on a full-time basis at the time that application for scholarship is made and plan to continue for the Fall term (or equivalent) immediately following receipt of the scholarship.

Before you begin the application:

Have the following information ready:

1. Name of college you think or know you will be attending in the Fall of 2025. It is okay if this is a best guess.
    
2. Your intended major. It is okay if this is unknown. You can enter unknown.
    
3. The job title/occupation of the parent or guardian who is the CSEA member.
    

4. Information about the Parent/Guardian who is the CSEA member:

   • CSEA Member ID number
   • CSEA Chapter name
   • CSEA Chapter number
   • CSEA Area
   • CSEA Region
      

   If your parent or guardian who is the CSEA member does not know this information, please have them email memberbenefits@csea.com or call (866) 487-2732 to obtain it.

5. Your parent(s) or guardian(s) adjusted gross income as shown on their most recent federal tax return. This is line number 11 on IRS form 1040.
    
6. You will be asked the following short essay questions on the application:
   • Your plans and objectives for college and beyond, including career goals.
   • Your High School and/or college activities including any honors or awards, clubs, offices held in student government, other school activities, as well as non-school related activities
   • Your work experience and community and volunteer services.
   • You can note any special circumstances or hardships if applicable.
   • List any additional family members who are also attending higher education.
      
7. Have the following documents ready to upload:
   • Official, signed transcript from your current school (PDF file only)
   • Letter of recommendation - must be recently dated and signed (PDF file only)
   • Photo of applicant (JPG or PNG file only)

Applications that do not include these required additional items will be disqualified from consideration.

Selection Process:  The selection of scholarship awards is made by the CSEA Scholarship Committee, and all applicants are notified via email of their award status no later than the end of May.

Basis of Awards:  For the first-year scholarship, some awards are based primarily on scholastic achievement, others are based primarily on need, and/or leadership, character, and service. For the college scholarships, the awards are based on a balance of need, scholastic achievement, goals and objectives, and character, leadership, and service.

Payment of Scholarship Awards:  Awards are paid in the following manner: $1,000 to be paid in the month of September. Before payment of a scholarship can be made, the recipient must furnish proof of his/her enrollment as a full-time student. If the recipient of an award fails to provide proof of enrollment, all monies will be forfeited and awarded to a designated alternate.

Deadline:  The deadline for submitting a completed application online, including uploading the required documents is no later than midnight February 1, 2025.

Do you have questions?
Email scholarships@csea.com or call Member Benefits at (866) 487-2732.